Information transmission, information display method and information display apparatus

ABSTRACT

Content body and B-HTTP elements are broadcast to a user&#39;s system ( 20 ) by messages inserted into the vertical blanking intervals of a television signal. At the user&#39;s system, the messages are stored on the hard disk, and the messages are retrieved by using the information in the effective period start time element, which is one of the elements (S 102 ). The browser ( 47 ) displays on the screen ( 47   a ) the content body among the messages (S 107 ).

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This is a divisional of application Ser. No. 09/180,495, filed Nov. 10,1998.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to an information transmission method, ainformation display method and an information display apparatus thatdisplays content information (e.g., Internet content information orrelated content information) multiplexed in a television broadcast, forexample.

BACKGROUND ART

Various services that utilize the Internet have become availablerecently. A user can enjoy such services as information provision byaccessing servers that provide services on the Internet. However,services on the Internet are based upon communications processing.Basically, a communications channel must be set up between a serviceprovider and a service recipient, so the service provision is limitedquantitatively.

By contrast, broadcasting has the merit of being able to provideinformation simultaneously to an unspecified multitude of recipientswithin the range of the broadcast signal. The present invention providestechnology that is suitable for allowing many recipients to effectivelyutilize Internet content information, by multiplexing the Internetcontent information or related information in the television broadcast.

Furthermore, teletext broadcasting technology is related to the presentinvention. The teletext broadcasting technology broadcasts characters inaddition to the normal broadcast, by inserting the character informationin the vertical blanking interval of the television broadcast.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

According to one aspect of the present invention, an informationtransmission and display method comprises the steps of: multiplexing, abroadcast signal, source information that specifies a source of certaincontent information, said source information not being included incontent information; transmitting the multiplexed broadcast signal;receiving the multiplexed broadcast signal; extracting the sourceinformation from the multiplexed broadcast signal; retrieving thecertain content information from the source, based upon the sourceinformation; and displaying on a display device at least a part of thecertain content information received from the source.

According to this configuration, based upon this source information, itis possible to receive content information from a medium other than thebroadcast signal, and it is possible to utilize the content informationby overcoming the restriction of the broadcast signal multiplexingcapacity.

In this configuration, the broadcast signal may be a televisionbroadcast signal. The source information may be multiplexed by insertingit into vertical blanking intervals of a television broadcast signal.The source may be a broadcast signal different from the multiplexedbroadcast signal transmitted from a satellite. The different broadcastsignal may be a broadcast signal transmitted by wire. The sourceinformation may be information stored in an information storage deviceprovided on the side that receives the multiplexed broadcast signal.

Further, the content information may be hypertext. Still further, maycontain a program code.

Also, according to another aspect of the present invention the secondtechnical feature, an information display apparatus comprises: means forreceiving a broadcast signal having source information multiplexedtherein, said source information specifying a source of certain contentinformation, and not being included in content information; means forextracting the source information from the received broadcast signal;means for retrieving the certain content information from the source,based upon the source information; a display device; and, means fordisplaying at least a part of the certain content information on thedisplay device.

Also, according to yet another aspect of the present invention, aninformation transmission and display method comprises the steps of:transmitting a broadcast signal that contains source information thatspecifies a source of certain content information, said sourceinformation no being included in content information; receiving thebroadcast signal; extracting the source information from the broadcastsignal; receiving the certain content information from the source, basedupon the source information; and displaying on a display device, atleast a part of the certain content information received from thesource.

Also, according to a still further aspect of the present invention, aninformation display device comprises: means for receiving a broadcastsignal containing source information that specifies a source of certaincontent information, said source information not being included incontent information; means for extracting the source information fromthe received broadcast signal; means for retrieving the certain contentinformation from the source, based upon the source information; adisplay device; and means for displaying at least a part of the certaincontent information on the display device.

Also, the present invention can be implemented as a program product.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram depicting the overall embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 2 is a diagram explaining the VBI data multiplexing used in theembodiment;

FIG. 3 is a diagram explaining the VBI data multiplexing used in theembodiment;

FIG. 4 is a diagram explaining the VBI data multiplexing used in theembodiment;

FIG. 5 is a diagram explaining the format of the data group (message) ofthe embodiment;

FIG. 6 is a diagram explaining an embodiment of the B-HTTP element ofFIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a diagram explaining an example of the B-HTTP element of FIG.5;

FIG. 8 is a diagram depicting the functional blocks of theimplementation of the configuration of FIG. 1 using a personal computer;

FIG. 9 is a diagram explaining the hierarchical structure of theimplementation of the configuration of FIG. 1 using a personal computer;

FIG. 10 is a diagram depicting a concrete example of the implementationof the configuration of FIG. 1 using a personal computer;

FIG. 11 is a diagram explaining a configuration example of the Bitcastbrowser 47 and the B-HTTP service block 46 both of FIG. 8;

FIG. 12 is a diagram depicting an example of a screen displayed by theBitcast browser;

FIG. 13 is a diagram depicting an configuration example of the indexelements used for message caching;

FIG. 14 is a diagram explaining the cache list that points to the indexelements;

FIG. 15 is a diagram explaining the display list that points to theindex elements;

FIG. 16 is a flowchart explaining the operation of displaying a webpage, etc.;

FIG. 17 is a diagram depicting an example of the layout element;

FIG. 18 is a diagram depicting the layout of the Bitcast browsercorresponding to the layout icon example of FIG. 17;

FIG. 19 is a flowchart explaining the icon display operation;

FIG. 20 is a flowchart explaining the operation after an icon isclicked;

FIG. 21 is a flowchart explaining the operation after an icon isclicked;

FIG. 22 is a block diagram explaining the configuration of paybroadcasting;

FIG. 23 is a flowchart explaining the modification of keys for the paybroadcasting;

FIG. 24 is a flowchart explaining the modification of the cache indexlist of FIG. 14 after a message is accessed;

FIG. 25 is a flowchart explaining the operation during messagereception;

FIG. 26 is a flowchart explaining the search operation;

FIG. 27 is a flowchart explaining the operation during a download;

FIG. 28 is a flowchart explaining the operation during a web page buttonclick;

FIG. 29 is a flow chart showing the operation when reserving a programfor tuning and recording;

FIG. 30 is a flow chart showing the operation of tuning;

FIG. 31 is a flow chart showing the operation for videotaping; and

FIG. 32 is a flow chart showing the operation for automatic capture ofdata by means of a pull element.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below withreference to the drawing.

FIG. 1 shows an overview of a broadcasting and information processingsystem in which the present embodiment is applied. In this figure, abroadcast server 11, a content production terminal 12, transmissionfacilities 13, etc., are provided in a television broadcasting station10. Prepared broadcast programs are broadcast by means for the broadcastserver 11, via the transmission facilities 13. In the presentembodiment, the transmission signal of a broadcast program contains anordinary television signal and a content information signal multiplexedin the vertical blanking intervals of that television signal. At thereceiving side, the broadcast signal is received via an antenna (notshown), and the broadcast signal is restored by a television receiver, apersonal computer with a television reception function, etc. In thefigure, a personal computer 20 having a television reception function isshown as an example. The personal computer 20 has a function thatdemodulates the broadcast signal. Based upon the demodulated signal, itregenerates the television picture, in a full screen or a part of thescreen. Also, as shown in the figure, the personal computer 20 may beconnected to a telephone line via a modem 21. The personal computer 20is connected to the Internet 30 via the model 21, etc. (if necessary,via a provider's communication channel), and various servers areconnected to the Internet. In this embodiment, the WWW server 31 forinformation provision is connected.

Furthermore, a storage medium 20 b (e.g., floppy disk, CD-ROM) is usedin order to install the Bitcast software 48 mentioned later (see FIG. 8)on the personal computer 20. Also, the device 20 a (e.g., a data storagedevice such as a CD-ROM drive or DVD (digital video disk) drive, aset-top box or a tuner for BS broadcasts, CS broadcasts, cabletelevision broadcasts) supplies data to the personal computer 20. Inthis embodiment, although the device 20 a is attached externally to thepersonal computer 20, equivalent cards and equipment may be housedwithin the personal computer 20.

In the present embodiment, the broadcasting station 10 receives webinformation (web pages) described in HTML (HyperText Markup Language)from a WWW server and broadcasts this information after multiplexing itin the broadcast signal of an ordinary broadcast program. In this case,rather than being transmitted directly, the web information may betransmitted after being processed by means of the content productionterminal 12, or information prepared separately by means of the contentproduction terminal 12 may be transmitted. A multiplexing method and theformat of the information transmitted after multiplexing will bedescribed later.

The method for multiplexing information in a television broadcast willbe explained next. The content information is multiplexed by insertingit into the vertical blanking intervals of the television signal. Morespecifically, this is performed by using a digital informationmultiplexing method (normally called as a VBI (vertical blankinginterval) method) specified by the advisory report 83 of the first groupof the Telecommunications Technology Commission.

That is, the television signal has 262.5 horizontal scan intervals perfield (i.e., 525 per frame), of which the first 21 horizontal scanintervals form a vertical blanking interval, which is not displayed byan ordinary television receiver. FIG. 2 shows the roles of these 21horizontal scan intervals. (Also shown is the 22nd scan interval that isthe beginning of the image.) Furthermore, in the figure, horizontal scanintervals 263-283 of an odd-numbered fields are counted within oneframe, so they become 1-21 within one field. As is apparent from thefigure, the data for character multiplexing are multiplexed in the 14th,15th, 16th, and 21st (i.e., the 276th, 277th, 278th, and 283rd)horizontal scan intervals. On the other hand, they are released fordigital broadcasting (for VBI) to the 10th, 11th, 12th, and 13th (i.e.,272nd, 273rd, 274th, and 275th) horizontal scan intervals, and in thisembodiment, the content information is multiplexed in the horizontalscanning interval for this VBI.

FIG. 3 shows how the VBI signal is multiplexed, and the data line isinserted after being converted to a video signal.

FIG. 4 shows the specifications of data transmission of the VBI method.In FIG. 4, the layer 1 is a electric-physical specification. Accordingto that specification, a given region within the horizontal scanninginterval is sampled at 296 locations. The 0 level of the VBI signal isthe pedestal level (black level) of the video signal, and the 1 level isthe level at 70% of the video signal's white level.

The layer 2 is the data link layer. Here, the signal is handled aslogical data (i.e., 1 and 0). The string of data transmitted in onehorizontal scan line is called a data line. A data line consists of datapackets. The data packets are protected from errors by means of an errorcorrection code ((272, 190) reduced differential set cyclic code). Atthe reception side, bit synchronization is obtained based upon the clockline, and the data clock's start can be detected based upon the framingcode.

The layer 3 mainly shows the prefix function.

The prefix information consists mainly of logical channel informationand block linking information. Data blocks are sorted by the logicalchannel to which the data blocks belong, according to the logicalchannel information. The block linking information contains suchinformation as link start, end, etc. By means of this information,related data block are linked, thereby generating data groups, which aremeaningful collections of data. In this embodiment, this data group iscalled a message, which is considered a processing unit.

The content information transmitted by means of the VBI method, asaforementioned, will be discussed next. The transmitted contentinformation is mainly web information. However, it may be any form ofinformation. For example, it may be a computer program code.

FIG. 5 shows the data format of the processing unit (i.e., message) ofthe content information. Hereinafter, this will be called theBitcast-HTTP format, which will be abbreviated as B-HTTP. (Bitcast is atrademark of Infocity, Inc., HTTP is the abbreviation of a hypertextmarkup language.) In FIG. 5, there are two types of B-HTTP formats: □content type and, group information type. The content type aims attransmitting content itself. The group information type transmitsinformation formed by grouping multiple content items, without aiming attransmitting content itself. Messages with the content-type format arecalled content messages, and messages with the group information-typeformat are called group messages.

Content messages are transmitted independently or together with groupmessages. The group identifier for a content message transmittedindependently is all 0s (indicating independence from the group). If acontent message is transmitted together with a group message, the groupmessage is transmitted first, and the number of content messagesindicated by this group message are transmitted sequentially. In thiscase, all identifiers of the content messages are identical to theidentifier of the group message. In the content message, the informationalready indicated in the group message (e.g., information specified inthe effective period start time element mentioned later) can be omitted.

In FIG. 5, the B-HTTP format consists of a version field (including typeidentifier), group identifier field, B-HTTP element field, content bodyfield, and field for the separator (all 0s) that partitions the contentbody and the B-HTTP element. The main fields are as follows:

(1) Version

The high-order 4 bits should be “0000.” These are used during protocolconversion. The low-order 4 bits distinguishes between the contentmessage and the group message.

(2) Group identifier

This 32-bit ID identifies the group. If it is set to all 0s in thecontent type, it indicates information independent from the group.

(3) B-HTTP element

These elements provide omittable additional information and will bediscussed later with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7.

(4) Content number

This specifies the number of content messages that belong to a group.

(5) Content body

This contains the content proper in the content message, that isdescribed by means of HTML (structured document), GIF (image), JPEG(image), etc.

Details of the B-HTTP elements will be explained next. FIGS. 6 and 7show examples of these elements. In the figure, the elements consist ofan identifier, length, and body. The contents will be explained next.

(1) MIME header

This complies with the HTTP protocol (Multipurpose Internet MailExtension). Describes the content type, etc.

(2) Name element

This corresponds to the file name of the URL (Uniform Resource Locator;Internet resource naming rules). Specified by the full path in a contentmessage independent from the group. Specified by the directory name inthe group message.

(3) Content compression specification element

This specifies the content compression method. Zero indicates that thecontent is not compressed.

(4) Keyword element

This is used for keyword addition and used when performing searching,clipping, etc., discussed later.

(5) Icon element

This contains information for the icon displayed automatically on part(e.g., the bottom) of the display screen to notify the viewer that thespecified message was received (i.e., apparently received). Furthermore,the message actually is received before the effective period's starttime, which is discussed later. The effective period's start timecorresponds to the apparent reception time. Therefore, it is possible totransmit and receive even messages containing a large amount of data,with a sufficient lead time.

(6) Live-mode element

This message, which is synchronized with the main television broadcast(i.e., normal broadcast contents), indicates the information to bedisplayed at the specified time (i.e., the effective period start time).

(7) Effective period start time element (relative time)

This indicates the time the corresponding message becomes valid, bymeans of the relative time from the message reception time. In the caseof a live-mode message, it contains the time when the contents of thecorresponding content message are to be displayed automatically.

Furthermore, this may be displayed by using the absolute time instead ofthe relative time. In this case, a frame number is added in the UTC(universal time coordinated) format, for example, in order to notify ofthe time that the corresponding content message becomes effective.

(8) Effective period element

This specifies the effective period by using the number of seconds fromthe effective period start time. At the terminal, the message remains inthe cache (i.e., a cache in a direct-access storage device, such as ahard disk) for at least this period. Furthermore, in this example, theeffective period element with all is (i.e., all bits set to 1) indicatesforcibly to delete the message from the cache. That is, the effectiveelement with all 1 s is used as a flag that indicates deletion from thecache. Of course, it also is possible to use a characteristic element asthis flag. It also is possible to use another specific bit pattern ofthe effective element. Moreover, it also is possible to use the specificbit pattern of another element.

(9) Anchor element

This indicates the link-destination resource address information bymeans of the URL. For example, when an icon is displayed using themessage's icon element, it is possible to access the link-destinationresource specified by the icon element by clicking the icon. This willbe discussed later with reference to FIGS. 20 and 21. When a URL, forexample, is used to identify the anchor element, the anchor elementlooks like “HTTP://www.infocity.co.jp/dir1/index.html”. Here, “HTTP” isthe transport protocol, “www.infocity.co.jp” is the domain name, and“dir1/index.html” is the path name. Furthermore, in this example, theURL is extended in order to enable access to information from arecording device (e.g., CD-ROM, DVD, hard disk), wire broadcasting ofcable television and broadcast signals from broadcast satellites andcommunications satellites. For example, when acquiring HTML data fromchannel 11 of a BS broadcast, the URL becomes“HTTP://bitcast/BS11/filename.html”. Here, “bitcast” is the proxyserver. “BS11” indicates the medium and corresponds to the directory.

(10) Coupon element

This indicates the right to various services (e.g., online shoppingdiscount services).

(11) Layout element

This specifies the layout, colors, shapes, background, fonts, and otherattribute information for the browser itself or the contents displayedby the browser.

(12) Encryption element

This indicates the protection technique (e.g., encryption, scrambling).

(13) Menu element

This is used to display the menu from an icon, and specifies multiplegroups of icon information length, icon information, anchor elementlength, and anchor element (link destination).

(14) Program element

This contains broadcast program information. A program element can becreated and transmitted for each program (a program itself or acommercial). The broadcast program information can consist of suchinformation as the program (the program itself or a commercial) name,the program code (e.g., G code), the broadcast date and time (includingyear/month/day, day of the week), the cast (performer names) (one ormultiple), the program type (e.g. genres such as baseball hookups,movie), and other information. The broadcast program information is notan attribute of the content body, so it can be transmitted without beingaccompanied by the content body. Of course, it may accompany the contentbody.

(15) Cue element

This specifies the start timing for the recording (videotaping) of abroadcast program. The cue element also can be transmitted withoutaccompanying the content body.

(16) Pull element

This is used to automatically retrieve data from a server, etc., evenwith specification by the user.

This concludes the explanation of the messages transmitted after beingmultiplexed with the contents of the main broadcast.

The structure for receiving content information at the personal computer20 of FIG. 1 will be discussed next, with reference to FIG. 8.Furthermore, in FIG. 8, the personal computer 20 consists of atelevision signal tuner 41, a waveform equalizer circuit 42, an A/Dconverter 43, a packet extraction block 44, a program data generationblock 45, a B-HTTP service block 46, a Bitcast browser block 47, etc. Inthis example, the B-HTTP service block 46 and the Bitcast browser 47 areprovided as the Bitcast software product 48.

The tuner block 41 selects the channel of and demodulates the televisionsignal that was modulated and transmitted. The waveform equalizercircuit 42 corrects the signal level of and disturbances in the waveformof the television signal. The A/D converter 43 samples the signal amongthe specified horizontal scan intervals, in {fraction (1/364)} fH(horizontal scan frequency) second intervals, and generates digitalinformation. The A/D converter 43 corresponds to the physical layer(layer 1) of the ISO reference model standardized by the ISO(International Organization for Standardization).

The packet extraction block 44 performs synchronization processing(framing processing) in bit and byte units, for the digital informationsampled by the A/D converter 43. It then extracts the data packetinformation and detects and corrects transmission errors. The packetextraction block 44 corresponds to the data link layer (layer 2) of theISO reference model.

The program data generation block 45 sorts and links by packet relatedon the transmission side, in order to generate data blocks. This programdata generation block 45 corresponds to the network layer (layer 3) andthe transport layer (layer 4) of the ISO reference model. Furthermore,these blocks 41-45 are structured similarly in the VBI terminal, also.

The program data blocks generated thus are supplied to the B-HTTPservice block 46. The B-HTTP service block 46 processes the messages(data groups) according to the B-HTTP format explained in FIGS. 5, 6,and 7. The details will be explained next with reference to FIG. 11 andsubsequent figures. The Bitcast browser block 47 displays the contentinformation based upon the processing in the B-HTTP service block 46.This browser block 47 provides the user with an interface that resemblesan ordinary browser that displays Internet WWW pages.

The relationships between the operating system and the hardware for thepersonal computer 20, the browser block 47, and the B-HTTP service block46 are as shown in FIG. 9. Also, the actual implementation is as shownin FIG. 10. In the embodiment of FIG. 10, the Bitcast layer handles thefunctions of multicasting in the communication technologies and VBIbroadcasting in one and the same layer, so the broadcasting andcommunication multicasting are handled identically. Also, the socketWinsock2 is expanded to handle the Bitcast layer protocol in addition tothe TCP/IP protocol, so communications and broadcasting ultimately arehandled at the same level.

FIG. 11 shows a configuration example of the B-HTTP service block 46 andthe Bitcast browser block 47. In the figure, the B-HTTP service block 46consists of a B-HTTP protocol analysis block 50, a cache 51, a sequencecontrol block 52, etc. The B-HTTP protocol analysis block 50 analyzesthe messages received from the program data generation block 45, inaccordance with the B-HTTP protocol, after which it passes the resultsto the cache. The cache 51 stores the information received from theprotocol analysis block 50. The sequence control block 52 manages thecorrelation between the time and contents, for the information(real-time information) that must be displayed at a predetermined time,among the information stored in the cache 51. The sequence control block52 then monitors the contents of the cache 51 and notifies the browserof the nearest time and contents.

The browser block 47 consists of a sequence control block 53, a contentanalysis block 54, a content display block 55, an icon display block 56,etc. The sequence control block 53 monitors the internal timer and callsthe B-HTTP service block 46 at the specified time, thereby obtaining thecontent message. The content analysis block 54 analyzes the obtainedcontent message. For example, it analyzes a document described with HTMLgrammar, etc. The content display block 55 displays based upon theresults of the analysis at the content analysis block 54. The icondisplay block 56 displays on the screen the icon that indicates that amessage has been received.

Furthermore, the B-HTTP service block 46 controls the recording of thedemodulated television signal. The recording medium 57 can be avideotape recorder, hard disk, digital video disk, etc. The details ofrecording control will be explained next with reference to FIG. 31.

The screen is displayed as shown in FIG. 12, for example. In theexample, the elements displayed on the screen are a web screen 47 a anda television screen 47 b. The web screen 47 a has the same appearanceand user interface as an Internet WWW browser. The screen has thefollowing three switchable display modes, for example:

(1) Television display mode, which displays a television screen in afull-screen.

(2) Web display mode, which displays a web screen in a full-screen.

(3) Composite display mode, which displays the television screen on apart of the web screen.

When a message containing icon information is received, thecorresponding icon is displayed at the bottom of the screen, forexample, at the effective period start time. If the message containscontent body displayed by the browser, when the icon is clicked, thecontent body is displayed on the web screen. If the current mode is thetelevision display mode, the mode transits to the composite screen mode.The content body is displayed in the composite mode or the web mode, inwhich the web screen is displayed. Here, the user can select among theautomatic update display mode and the manual display mode. In theautomatic update display mode, the display of the current contentmessage is updated with the display of the line mode content message atthe time when the effective period start time newly arrived. In themanual display mode, the live mode's content messages are spooled at thetime when the effective period start time arrived. The content messagesare selected sequentially or by means of a dialog based upon the user'soperation, and then displayed.

Next, the detailed operation will be explained with emphasis on theB-HTTP service block 46.

Cache Index Data Structure

The data structure of index used to manage the received messages will beexplained first. When a message is received, the message is stored inthe cache (hard disk). Each message is stored as a file. Then, in orderto manage the messages, corresponding index element is generated andstored in memory. The index element is shown in FIG. 13. The indexelement has the following fields: (1) the file name (name element), (2)the effective period (universal time coordinated), (3) the storage flag(set ON after storage by the download processing), (4) the live flag(which indicates whether or not the mode is the live mode), (5) the iconflag (which indicates whether or not an icon element is present), (6)the pull flag (which indicates whether or not a pull element exists),and (7) the keyword(s).

The index elements are pointed to by two types of index lists, forexample, and they are used for cache LRU (Least Recently Used)management and for web page and icon display management. In FIG. 14, alist is formed by using bi-directional pointers in the access order. Inthis manner, it is possible to manage the messages in the cache by meansof the LRU method. Also, as shown in FIG. 15, a list can be formed byusing bi-directional pointers in the sequence of the display timing(effective period start time), when this list is used, it is possible toretrieve messages in the display timing order and to display icons andweb pages, etc. (in the live mode).

Web Screen Display

FIG. 16 shows the operation that displays on the web screen theinformation to be displayed automatically at the specified time by thelive-mode element. In this figure, the timer (not shown) starts the webdisplay operation after referencing the effective period start time (‘S’in FIG. 6) (S101). Then one index element is retrieved in the displaytiming order (S102), and the live flag is used to determine whether ornot the mode is the live mode (S103). If the mode is not the live mode(e.g., in the event of messages for downloads), the processing flowterminates as is. If the mode is the live mode, messages are read fromthe cache, an HTML document is analyzed, and a web screen is displayed(S104, S106, S107).

At step S105, the layout information is retrieved. If there is layoutinformation, the browser layout is modified. As shown in FIG. 17, also,the browser layout information consists of the layout, colors, shapes,background, fonts, and other attribute information for the browseritself or the contents displayed by the browser. As shown in FIG. 17,for example, the television screen displayed in the browser (in thecomposite display mode) can be changed to the layout shown in FIG. 18 byspecifying x=20, y=20, h=240, and w=320.

Icon Display

FIG. 19 shows the operation that displays an icon at the specified time.The previously explained web display is not performed if the web screenis not open. The icon to be explained here is displayed regardless ofwhether or not the web screen is open. In FIG. 19, the timer (not shown)starts the icon display operation after referencing the effective periodstart time (S111). Then one index element is retrieved in display timingsequence (S112), after which the icon flag is referenced in order todetermine whether or not an icon element is present (S113). If there isno icon element, the processing terminates as is. If there is an iconelement, messages are read from the cache, the icon information isretrieved, and the icon is displayed on the screen (S114, S116, S117).

Icons can be displayed in various modes and various layouts. Also,various methods can be adopted in which excessive icons disappear. Theyare arranged linearly in the dock area at the bottom of the screen, andthey may disappear if the arrangement location fills, or the icons canbe made to be selectable by scrolling, or they can be selected frommultiple pages.

Furthermore, the icon layout information is retrieved in step S115, sothe icon layout can be changed.

Icon Click Processing

FIGS. 20 and 21 show the operation when an icon on the screen isclicked. In FIG. 20, when an icon is clicked, the message namecorresponding to the icon is retrieved, and the cache is searched (S121,S122, S123). If the appropriate message name is not in the cache, anerror is returned, and processing terminates (S124, S125). If theappropriate message name is present, the processing checks whether ornot there is an anchor element (S126). The anchor element specifies thedata source. Data sources include an Internet server, a broadcast signalfrom a broadcast satellite or a communications satellite, a cabletelevision signal from a cable television broadcast station, a CD-ROM, aDVD, a hard disk, etc.

If there is an anchor element, the processing determines whether or notthe source of the corresponding data is a server on the Internet (i.e.,whether or not TCP/IP connection is necessary) (S127). If the datasource is a server on the Internet, the server on the Internet isaccessed and information is retrieved. That is, TCP/IP connection isperformed, and an HTML document (i.e., data) is requested and received(S128, S129, S130). Then the received HTML document is analyzed anddisplayed on the web screen (S131, S133, S135). Furthermore, in thiscase, the anchor element is, for example,“HTTP://www.infocity.co.jp/dir1/index.html”.

In step S127, if the data source is not a server on the Internet, inother words, if it is a broadcast signal from a broadcast satellite or acommunications satellite, a cable television signal from a cabletelevision station, a service that uses a wire, a CD-ROM, a DVD, a harddisk, etc., connection is made to the stream of for example thebroadcast signal from a broadcast satellite or a communicationssatellite, a cable television signal from a cable television station, aCD-ROM, a DVD, a hard disk, or the stream is opened, and processing thenproceeds to step S129. Furthermore, at step S132 a decision is made asto whether or not it can be displayed by the browser. If it cannot bedisplayed, a dialog is displayed, and it is stored in a file (S134).Furthermore, in the event of such a data source, the anchor element is,for example, “HTTP://bitcast/BS11/filename.html”. According to thesource identifier of the medium (data source) corresponding to thedirectory (e.g., BS11 for channel 11 of a BS satellite), the device isdriven and the data are retrieved.

Information from a cable television's wire broadcast signal or from thebroadcast signal from a broadcast satellite or a communicationssatellite (i.e., from the data source) may be the informationtransmitted in the main broadcast program, and it may be informationmultiplexed with this broadcast program.

On the other hand, if there is no anchor element, the menu element andthe encryption element are checked. Here, processing related to the menuelement will be explained, and processing when there is an encryptionelement will be discussed later. If there is a menu element, the menu isdisplayed (S137, S152). When a menu item (icon) is selected, processingresumes at step S123. If a menu item is not selected, processingterminates (S154). The menu can be used to perform detailed selection.For example, when an icon represents an advertiser, the menu can be usedto display individual products. It is also possible to display the menuin multiple levels.

At step 137, if there is no menu element, the processing checks whetheror not there is an encryption element. If there is no encryptionelement, the data block's MIME element is obtained, and the type ofcontent body is checked (S139). If the element is “text” or “html,” itis analyzed as an HTML document and displayed on the web screen(S140-S143). If the element is “program,” the content body is executedas if it were a program (S144-S146).

Fee-Based Broadcasting

Before the processing in the event of an encryption element isexplained, the design of fee-based broadcasting implemented utilizingthe encryption element will be explained briefly. Here, the fee-basedpart is the content information. This is regardless of whether or notthe main broadcast itself is fee-based.

In FIG. 22, in the broadcasting station 10, the key server 14 isprovided in addition to the broadcast server 11. The user's personalcomputer 20 and the key server 14 can be dialed up and connected via theInternet 30.

In order to utilize fee-based broadcasting for content information, itis necessary to contract with the administrative system of abroadcasting station, etc. After entering into a contract, the userobtains a user ID and a password. The user ID and password are appliedfor by means of a method specified by the administrative system (e.g.,by letter, electronic mail, facsimile, web), and the user is notified ofthe user ID and the password by the same method.

Furthermore, in order to unprotect protected data transmitted by meansof a fee-based broadcast, it is necessary to obtain unprotectioninformation (i.e., key information). The key information can be obtainedfrom the key server 14, via a TCP/IP connection. The user ID andpassword are required to obtain the key information.

Also, the log of the usage of the key information by the user is storedin the personal computer 20, and the key server 14 side is notified ofthe log at fixed intervals, and the charge is calculated based on thatlog. The routine for notification regarding information concerning theuse of the key information by the user may be activated automatically bythe user side or the key server 14 may poll the user side.

Check of the Key's Valid Period

When the browser is started up, the current validity of the keyinformation is checked. If necessary, it is possible to obtain valid keyinformation via the Internet. FIG. 23 shows this processing. In FIG. 23,when the browser is started up, the valid period of each key that isregistered as in-use is checked (S160, S161). In order to check, thevalid period of each key that is registered as in-use is stored. If thekey information is still valid, the processing terminates as is (S162,S166). If it is not valid, the procedure for obtaining a key is executedafter the establishment of a TCP/IP connection to the key server 14(S164, S166). If, for some reason, a valid key cannot be obtained or isnot obtained, a message to that effect is displayed and processingterminates (S165, S166).

Decryption by Means of the Encryption Element

The unprotection of protected content will be explained next. In step137 of FIG. 20, if there is an encryption element, processing proceedsto step S147 in FIG. 21. That is, it checks the validity of the keyinformation for releasing protection (e.g., scrambling and encryptionthat specifies the encryption element) (S147). If the key information isvalid, the protected (e.g., encrypted) content is unprotected and stored(S148, S149, S150). If the key information is invalid, the reason isdisplayed to the user and processing terminates (S151). The encryptionelement can be used to specify any one of multiple protection techniquesand to deal with multiple protection methods from multiple datasuppliers.

Updating the Cache Index

FIG. 24 shows the processing for updating the cache index after amessage is accessed. In this manner, it is possible to maintainLRU-method cache management data. In FIG. 24, when a message isaccessed, the name of the accessed message is obtained (S171, S172).Then the cache index of the list in FIG. 14 is searched, and theappropriate index element is moved to the top position (S173-S176).

Operation During Data Reception

FIG. 25 shows the operation during data reception. In this figure, whena message is received, the cache is checked for storage space(S180-S182). If there is storage space, it is stored in the cache, thecache index is updated, the timer is set, and processing ends(S183-S186, S194).

Furthermore, step 194 determines whether or not the effective periodelement is “ALL1”. That is, it determines whether or not there is a flagthat indicates that data will be deleted forcibly from the cache. In thecase of “ALL1” (i.e., when the flag has been set in order to forciblyeliminate data from the cache), and the mode is checked to determinewhether or not it is the live mode. If the mode is live mode, thecontents are displayed, after which the data are deleted from the cache(S195, S196, S192). If the mode is not live mode, the data are deletedimmediately from the cache (S195, S192). This prevents the cache fromfilling with cached unnecessary data.

In step S182, if the cache lacks storage space, data blocks are deletedaccording to prescribed rules. First, the oldest information that doesnot apply to the reservation target (e.g., a message to be downloadedthat contains a user-specified keyword) is sought from the cache index(S187). If the information is relevant, the message is deleted from thecache, and the cache index is updated (S192, S193). If it is notrelevant, the oldest expired message is sought using the cache index(S189, S190). If it is relevant, the data are deleted, and the cacheindex is updated (S192, S193). If there is no invalid message, theoldest in the cache index is retrieved, the data are deleted from thecache, and the cache index is updated (S190-S193).

After as many old messages as necessary are deleted thus, the newmessages are stored (S183-S186).

In the cache management, it is possible to clip the (reservation)message corresponding to the user-specified keyword.

Furthermore, although data are received via the tuner 41 in FIG. 8, itis also possible to acquire data from such other media as BS broadcasts,CS broadcasts, cable television broadcasts, and recording devices. Inthis case, if new B-HTTP elements, which are used to switch data sourcesso that data from other media are acquired, are designed, dataacquisition can be triggered by multiplexing in the B-HTTP broadcastsignal the B-HTTP elements for switching. The acquired data are receivedas in FIG. 25, after which the data are displayed, etc.

Retrieval and Display

FIG. 26 shows the operation that searches and displays a message. InFIG. 25, when retrieval is specified, the retrieval dialog is displayed(S201, S202). If a keyword search is specified using this dialog, thecache index is searched, and the search result list is converted to anHTML document (S203, S204, S206). Also, if a keyword search is notspecified, the cache's data blocks are subjected to a full-text search,and the search results list is converted to an HTML document (S205,S206). The HTML document obtained thus is analyzed and displayed on theweb screen (S207-S209).

Download

FIG. 27 shows the operation that downloads received data blocks. Thedownload itself is an ordinary operation. First, a list of all or partof the messages in the cache is displayed, the file dialog is displayed,and download instructions are received, after which the messages areread from the cache and stored in a file (S211-S215). Then the storageflags for the index elements of the data blocks stored in the file arechanged to ON, indicating that the relevant data blocks may be deleted(S216, S217).

Operation after a Button Click

FIG. 28 shows the operation for accessing a corresponding page to aclick operation to a web page button. The button click triggers a checkof whether or not the information corresponding to the button is aBitcast anchor (S221, S222). If it is not a Bitcast anchor, a server onthe Internet is accessed in order to retrieve the information. That is,a TCP/IP connection is established, and an HTML document is requestedand received (S227, S228, S229). Then the received HTML document isanalyzed and displayed on the web screen (S230, S231, S232).

Furthermore, in this case as in the case of FIG. 20, information may beobtained from such sources the broadcast signal from a broadcastsatellite or a communications satellite, cable television's wirebroadcast signal, a CD-ROM, a DVD, a hard disk, etc., in addition to theserver on the Internet. In this case, steps S227-S232 should be replacedby steps S127-S136 in FIG. 20. The detailed explanation will not berepeated.

On the other hand, in the case of a Bitcast anchor, messages are readfrom the cache, and the HTML document is analyzed and displayed on theweb screen (S223-S226).

Program Reservation Operation

FIG. 29 shows the operation when reserving a program. (The programinformation transmitted by means of the program element is stored in thedesignated storage location. The program information can be displayed byclicking the specified button for program reservation and selecting fromthe menu.) The program information can be displayed in a listing form,for example. In FIG. 29, if program information reservation is initiatedby clicking a button, etc. (S241), the processing determines whether ornot there is a search or selection target in the program information(S242). If there is no target, the program reservation operationterminates. If there is a target, a listing of the broadcast programsthat were searched for or selected is displayed (S243). Various displaymodes are adoptable. If the displayed listings contain no program thatthe viewer wants to reserve, the reservation operation is discontinuedaccording the user operation, and the reservation operation terminates.If there is a program that the user would like to reserve, the userperforms the selection operation in order to reserve the program (S245).In this case, the program is searched for using the search function,after which the program may be reserved. After the program is reserved,the user optionally can also reserve videotaping (S246). By specifyingthe videotaping reservation, the videotaping of the program for whichthe channel was selected and a reservation was made is reserved (S247).If videotaping is not reserved, the processing is terminated accordingto the user's operation.

Channel Selection and Videotaping by Means of a Reservation

The operations of channel selection and videotaping reserved in FIG. 29will be explained next. FIGS. 30 and 31 show the operation of thischannel selection and videotaping. In FIG. 30, step 251 initiates thechecking of whether or not there is a reservation. If a program isreserved (S252), the program information is analyzed (S253), tuning(channel selection) for the program reserved based upon the analysisresult is performed, and the program is displayed on the screen (S254,S255). If no program is reserved, processing is terminated as is (S252).After program tuning is performed at step S255, the processing checkswhether or not videotaping has been reserved (S256). If videotaping hasbeen reserved, processing transits to the operation of FIG. 31. Ifvideotaping has not been reserved, the operation of FIG. 31 is notperformed.

In FIG. 31, videotaping is started if videotaping has been reserved(S257). That is, first, the capacity of the specified medium 57 ischecked to determine whether or not it is sufficient (S258). Asmentioned, the medium 57 can be a hard disk, digital video disk,videotape recorder, etc. According to the medium, the recordingoperation varies and the capacity checking method also varies. If thespecified medium's capacity is insufficient, processing is terminatedwithout videotaping. If the specified medium's capacity is sufficient,videotaping is started after the arrival of the cue element for theprogram to be videotaped. That is, the processing checks whether or notthe program for which videotaping was specified is contained in the cueinformation of the arrived cue element (S259). If it is contained,videotaping is performed on the user-specified medium (S260). If theprogram for which videotaping was specified is not contained in the cueinformation of the cue element, processing proceeds to step 261, whereit is determined whether or not the user specified the discontinuationof the videotaping process. If the user specified discontinuation,processing is terminated. If discontinuation processing is notperformed, the processing resumes from step S259.

When the program is stored in the medium, also, the existence of theuser's discontinue instruction is monitored. When discontinuation isspecified, processing is discontinued (S261).

Thus, videotaping is not started until the arrival of the cue elementfor the program for which videotaping was specified, so it is possibleto videotape precisely even if, for some reason, the program's broadcastis postponed. Naturally, the videotaping end time can also be shiftedaccording to the arrival time of the cue element.

Automatic Capture of Data by Means of the Pull Element

FIG. 32 shows the operation for the automatic capture of data by meansof the pull element. In FIG. 32, when the browser display starts, theprocessing determines whether or not there is a pull element for thedisplayed content body (S271, S272). That is, it checks for the presenceof the pull flag by referencing the index element of FIG. 13. If thereis no pull element, nothing happens. On the other hand, if there is apull element, the processing determines whether or not it is necessaryto establish a TCP/IP connection by referencing the URL of the pullelement (S273). If the URL specifies an external server, the processingdetermines that a TCP/IP connection is necessary, the TCP/IP connectionis established, and the data are acquired (S274, S276). On the otherhand, when the URL specifies the stream from the tuner for a BS, CS,CATV or a recording device such as a CD-ROM, hard disk, etc., aconnection with the corresponding stream is established or the stream isopened, and data are acquired from the relevant stream (S275, S276). Thedata acquired thus are displayed in the browser.

Furthermore, the embodiment is one example and various modifications arepossible. For example, although a personal computer was used as theuser-side terminal in the embodiment, it could also be an intelligenttelevision receiver, set-top box, etc. The SECAM and PAL televisionbroadcast formats could be used in addition to the NTSC format. Also, itis not restricted to television broadcasting, but could also be appliedto radio broadcasting. Also, the television broadcasting is not limitedto ground wave broadcasting; satellite broadcasting could be used. Also,various multiplexing methods could be applied, and frequencymultiplexing, etc., could also be applied. Also, other types of elementscould be used as the B-HTTP element.

Also, in the embodiment, the broadcast signal received by the personalcomputer is recorded by means of a videotape recorder, hard disk,digital video disk, etc. However, the structure may also be such thatthe videotape recorder itself retrieves the cue element and, basedthereupon, delays the recording timing.

The structure may also be such that the cue element contains therecording start time, the shift time, etc., and the recording timing isdelayed accordingly.

It is also possible, without involving the content body, to generate,multiplex, and then transmit a pull element, and after receiving thepull element, automatically to retrieve the pull element and display onthe screen the content information based upon such information as thepull element's URL.

In the preceding explanation of the embodiment, the HTML file wasmultiplexed in the television signal together with the B-HTTP element.However, it is also possible to directly broadcast the HTML file, videoand audio files, data files, etc., or to perform multicastingcommunication and broadcast communication. Before transmission, thefollowing information may be added to the files: the control informationthat controls the display timing (the trigger signal may be transmittedduring display), other content source information, cache information,layout information, data protection information, icon information, dataautomatic retrieval (pull) information, program reservation information,and control information (e.g., program display and videotaping timeadjustment information). In this case, for example, files containingcontrol information are received at the device 20 a (tuner for BSbroadcasts, CS broadcasts, cable television broadcasts, data broadcasts)in FIG. 1, and the file contents are displayed, etc., based upon thiscontrol information.

This concludes the concrete explanation of the embodiment.

The technical features of the embodiment will be summarized next.

(1) Specification of Display Timing

According to the first technical feature of the present embodiment, theinformation transmission and display method comprises the steps of:multiplexing in a broadcast signal, content information and informationregarding timing for displaying the content information on a displaydevice; transmitting the multiplexed broadcast signal; receiving themultiplexed broadcast signal; extracting the content information and thetiming information from the multiplexed broadcast signal; and displayingat least a part of the content information on the display device, basedupon the timing information.

In this configuration, it is possible to display content or a partthereof at the desired time, by multiplexing the content information andthe display timing information in the broadcast signal, which then istransmitted. For example, the display of the content information or apart thereof can be interlocked with the broadcast content.

Also, in this configuration, the broadcast signal may be a televisionbroadcast signal. The content information and the timing information maybe multiplexed in the television broadcast signal by inserting them intothe vertical blanking intervals of the television broadcast signal.Also, the timing information can be display time for the contentinformation. The display time can be expressed as the time relative tothe time when the content information was received. Also, the contentinformation can be program code and hypertext (including hypermedia)(e.g., web pages supplied by a WWW (World Wide Web) server on theInternet).

Also, according to the first technical feature, the information displayapparatus comprises: means for receiving a broadcast signal havingmultiplexed therein, content information and information regardingtiming for displaying the content information on a display device; meansfor extracting the timing information and the content information fromthe received broadcast signal; and means for displaying at least a partof the content information on the display device, based upon the timinginformation.

In this configuration, also, the display timing information is utilizedin order to display the content information or a part thereof such thatthey are interlocked to the broadcast content.

Also, according to the first technical feature, the informationtransmission and display method comprises the steps of: transmitting abroadcast signal that contains content information and informationregarding timing for displaying the content information on a displaydevice; receiving the broadcast signal; extracting the timinginformation and the content information from the broadcast signal; anddisplaying at least a part of the content information on the displaydevice, based upon the timing information.

In this configuration, it is possible to display the contents with atiming that differs from the reception timing.

Also, according to this first technical feature, the information displayapparatus comprises: means for receiving a broadcast signal containingcontent information and information regarding timing for displaying thecontent information on a display device; means for extracting the timinginformation and the content information from the received broadcastsignal; and means for displaying at least a part of the contentinformation on the display device, based upon the timing information.

In this configuration, also, it is possible to display the contents witha timing that differs from the reception timing.

(2) Data Source Specification Method

According to the second technical feature of the present embodiment, theinformation transmission and display method comprises the steps of:multiplexing, in a broadcast signal, source information that specifies asource of certain content information, said source information not beingincluded in content information; transmitting the multiplexed broadcastsignal; receiving the multiplexed broadcast signal; extracting thesource information from the multiplexed broadcast signal; retrieving thecertain content information from the source, based upon the sourceinformation; and displaying on a display device at least a part of thecertain content information received from the source.

According to this configuration, based upon this source information, itis possible to receive content information from a medium other than thebroadcast signal, and it is possible to utilize the content informationby overcoming the restriction of the broadcast signal multiplexingcapacity.

In this configuration, the broadcast signal may be a televisionbroadcast signal. The source information may be multiplexed by insertingit into vertical blanking intervals of a television broadcast signal.The source may be a broadcast signal different from the multiplexedbroadcast signal. The different broadcast signal may be a broadcastsignal transmitted from a satellite. The different broadcast signal maybe a broadcast signal transmitted by wire. The source information may beinformation stored in an information storage device provided on the sidethat receives the multiplexed broadcast signal.

Further, the content information may be hypertext. Still further, thecontent information may contain a program code.

Also, according to the second technical feature, the information displayapparatus comprises: means for receiving a broadcast signal havingsource information multiplexed therein, said source informationspecifying a source of certain content information, and not beingincluded in content information; means for extracting the sourceinformation from the received broadcast signal; means for retrieving thecertain content information from the source, based upon the sourceinformation; a display device; and means for displaying at least a partof the certain content information on the display device.

Also, according to this second technical feature, the informationtransmission and display method comprises the steps of: transmitting abroadcast signal that contains source information that specifies asource of certain content information, said source information not beingincluded in content information; receiving the broadcast signal;extracting the source information from the broadcast signal; receivingthe certain content information from the source, based upon the sourceinformation; and displaying on a display device at least a part of thecertain content information received from the source.

Also, according to this second technical feature, the informationdisplay device comprises: means for receiving at a broadcast signalcontaining source information that specifies a source of certain contentinformation, said source information not being included in contentinformation; means for extracting the source information from thereceived broadcast signal; means for retrieving the certain contentinformation from the source, based upon the source information; adisplay device; and means for displaying at least a part of the certaincontent information on the display device.

(3) Cache Method

Also, according to the third technical feature of this embodiment, theinformation transmission and display method comprises the steps of:multiplexing, in a broadcast signal, content information, informationregarding timing for displaying the content information on a displaydevice, and information regarding instructions for temporary storage ofthe content information; transmitting the multiplexed broadcast signal;receiving the broadcast signal; extracting, from the received broadcastsignal, the content information, the timing information, and theinformation regarding instructions for the temporary storage;temporarily storing the content information on a temporary storagedevice; in response to the information regarding instructions for thetemporary storage, forcibly deleting corresponding information among thecontent information temporarily stored; and retrieving the contentinformation from the temporary storage based on the timing informationand displaying on a display device at least a part of the contentinformation thus retrieved.

In this configuration, the temporary storage device can be utilizedeffectively because the content information, which need not be stored inthe temporary storage device (e.g., an area on the hard disk), isdeleted forcibly from the temporary storage device.

Also, according to the third technical feature of this embodiment, theinformation display device comprises: means for receiving a broadcastsignal having multiplexed therein, content information, informationregarding timing for displaying the content information on a displaydevice, and information regarding instructions for temporary storage ofthe content information; means for extracting, from the receivedbroadcast signal, the content information, the timing information, andthe information regarding instructions for the temporary storage; meansfor temporarily storing the content information; means, in response tothe information regarding instructions for the temporary storage, forforcibly deleting corresponding information among the contentinformation temporarily stored; and means for retrieving the contentinformation from the temporary storage device based on the timinginformation, and displaying on the display device at least a part of thecontent information thus retrieved.

Also, in this configuration, the temporary storage means can be utilizedeffectively because the content information, which need not be stored inthe temporary storage means, is deleted forcibly from the temporarystorage means.

Also, in this configuration, the broadcast signal may be a televisionbroadcast signal. The content information, the timing information, andthe information regarding instructions for temporarily storing thecontent information may be multiplexed in a television broadcast signalby inserting the same to the vertical blanking intervals of thetelevision broadcast signal.

Also, the timing information may be the display time for the contentinformation. Furthermore, the display time can be expressed as the timerelative to the time when the content information was received.

Also, the timing information may be used as the information related tothe temporary storage and in this design, when the timing informationtakes a specific value, the content information corresponding to thetiming information is deleted from the temporary storage means. In thiscase, the specific value may be a relative time of all ones.

Also, at least some of the content information to be deleted from thetemporary storage means may be deleted from the temporary storage meansafter being displayed on the display device.

Also, according to this third technical means, the informationtransmission and display method comprises the steps of: transmitting abroadcast signal that contains content information, informationregarding timing for displaying the content information on a displaydevice, and information regarding instructions for temporary storage ofthe content information; receiving the broadcast signal; extracting,from the received broadcast signal, the content information, the timinginformation, and the information regarding instructions for thetemporary storage; temporarily storing the content information on atemporary storage device; in response to the information regardinginstructions for the temporary storage, forcibly deleting correspondinginformation among the content information temporarily stored; andretrieving the content information from the temporary storage devicebased upon the timing information, and displaying on the display deviceat least a part of the content information thus retrieved.

Also, according to this third technical feature, the information displayapparatus comprises: means for receiving a broadcast signal containingthe content information, information regarding timing for displaying thecontent information on a display device, and information regardinginstructions for temporary storage of the content information; means forextracting, from the received broadcast signal, the content information,the timing information, and the information regarding instructions forthe temporary storage; temporary storage means for temporarily storingthe content information; means, in response to the information regardinginstructions for the temporary storage, for forcibly deletingcorresponding information among the content information storedtemporarily in the temporary storage means; and means for retrieving thecontent information from the temporary storage means, based upon thetiming information, and displaying on the display device at least a partof the content information thus retrieved.

(4) Layout Specification Method

According to the fourth technical feature of this embodiment, theinformation transmission and display method comprises the steps of:multiplexing, in the broadcast signal, content information and layoutinformation that specifies a layout of display areas in which thecontent information is displayed; transmitting the multiplexed broadcastsignal; receiving the multiplexed broadcast signal; extracting, from themultiplexed broadcast signal, the content information and the layoutinformation; and displaying at least a part of the content informationon the display device, with the layout corresponding to the layoutinformation.

According to this configuration, the supply side of the contentinformation can specify the browser layout, so the feeling appropriateto the content information can be provided to the user.

Also, in this configuration, the broadcast signal may be a televisionbroadcast signal. Also, the content information and the layoutinformation may be multiplexed in a television broadcast signal byinserting them into its vertical blanking intervals.

Also, the timing information may be the display time for the contentinformation. It may be expressed as as the time relative to the timewhen the content information was received. Furthermore, the contentinformation may be hypertext.

Also, according to the fourth technical feature, the information displayapparatus comprises: means for receiving a broadcast signal havingmultiplexed therein, content information and layout information thatspecifies a layout of display areas of the content information; meansfor extracting, from the received broadcast signal, the contentinformation and the layout information; a display device; and means fordisplaying at least a part of the content information on the displaydevice, with the layout corresponding to the layout information.

In this configuration, also, the supply side of the content informationcan specify the browser layout, so the feeling appropriate to thecontent information can be provided to the user.

Also, according to this fourth technical feature, the informationtransmission and display method comprises the steps of: transmitting abroadcast signal that contains the content information and layoutinformation that specifies a layout of display areas in which thecontent information is displayed; receiving the broadcast signal;extracting, from the broadcast signal, the content information and thelayout information; and displaying at least a part of the contentinformation on a display device, with the layout corresponding to thelayout information.

Also, according to this fourth technical feature, the informationdisplay apparatus comprises: means for receiving a broadcast signalcontaining content information and layout information that specifies alayout of display areas of the content information; means forextracting, from the received broadcast signal, the content informationand the layout information; a display device; and means for displayingat least a part of the content information on the display device, withthe layout corresponding to the layout information.

(5) Data Protection Method

According to the fifth technical feature of the present embodiment, theinformation transmission method comprises the steps of: multiplexing, inthe broadcast signal, protected content information and protectioninformation that indicates a protection technique for the contentinformation; transmitting the multiplexed broadcast signal; receivingthe multiplexed broadcast signal; extracting from the multiplexedbroadcast signal the protected content information and the protectioninformation; and converting the protected content information to usablecontent information, by means of a unprotection method corresponding tothe protection information.

According to this configuration, when a broadcast signal havingprotected content information multiplexed therein, is transmitted,protection information that specifies the protection method is alsotransmitted, so unprotection can be performed easily, even if adifferent protection method is adopted for each content information.

Also, in this configuration, there may be an additional step in whichthe site that manages the unprotection method is notified of the usagestate of the unprotection method. In this manner, charge management atthe management side is ensured.

Also, the broadcast signal may be a television broadcast signal. Thecontent information and the timing information may be multiplexed in atelevision broadcast signal by inserting them into its vertical blankingintervals. Also, the protection method can be encryption. Also, theprotection method can be scrambling. Also, the content information canbe display information displayed on a display device. Furthermore, thecontent information can be a program code.

Also, according to the fifth technical feature, the information receivercomprises: means for receiving a broadcast signal having multiplexedtherein, protected content information and protection information thatspecifies a method for protecting the content information; means forextracting, from the received broadcast signal, the protected contentinformation and the protection information; and means for converting theprotected content information to usable content information, by means ofan unprotection method corresponding to the protection method.

According to this configuration, when protected content information istransmitted after being multiplexed in the broadcast signal, theprotection information that specifies the protection method also istransmitted, so it is possible to unprotect the protected contentinformation easily, even if a different protection method is adopted foreach content information piece.

In this structure, there may be an additional step in which the sitethat manages the unprotection information is notified of the usage stateof the unprotection information.

According to the fifth technical feature, the information transmissionmethod comprises the steps of: transmitting a broadcast signalcontaining protected content information and protection information thatspecifies a method for protecting the content information; receiving thebroadcast signal; extracting from the broadcast signal the protectedcontent information and the protection information; and converting theprotected content information to usable content information, by means ofthe unprotection method corresponding to the protection information.

Also, according to this fifth technical feature, the informationreceiver comprises: means for receiving a broadcast signal containingprotected content information and protection information that specifiesa method for protecting the content information; means for extracting,from the received broadcast signal, the protected content informationand the protection information; and means for converting the protectedcontent information to usable content information, by means of theunprotection method corresponding to the protection method.

(6) Icon Display

According to the sixth technical feature of the present embodiment, theinformation transmission and display method comprises the steps of:multiplexing in the broadcast signal, display object information relatedto content information; transmitting the multiplexed broadcastinformation; receiving the multiplexed broadcast information;extracting, from the multiplexed broadcast signal, the display objectinformation; displaying on a display device the display object, basedupon the display object information; and in response to a certain eventto the display object displayed on the display device, executing certainprocessing corresponding to the content information for the contentinformation.

According to this configuration, the user first views the display objectand checks whether or not the contents are those the user desires to seeor utilize. The user can then view and utilize the desired contentinformation by clicking, etc.

Also, in this configuration, the contents may be multiplexed in thebroadcast signal. And the multiplexed broadcast signal may be received,and the content information may be extracted from the multiplexedbroadcast signal. Also, the content information may be acquired from asource other than the broadcast signal.

Also, the broadcast signal may be a television broadcast signal. Also,the display object information may be multiplexed in a televisionbroadcast signal by inserting it into the vertical blanking interval ofthe television broadcast signal.

Also, when the content information is information to be displayed, thecertain processing may be display of the content information on thedisplay device. Furthermore, when the content information specifies theinformation source, the certain processing can include the acquisitionof information from the information source.

Also, the display object may have a hierarchical structure. When thecertain event occurs for a high-level display object, a menu may appearas displaying one or multiple low-level display objects. Also, thedisplay object may be an icon.

Also, according to the sixth technical feature, the information displayapparatus comprises: means for receiving a broadcast signal havingmultiplexed therein, display object information related to the contentinformation; means for extracting the display object information fromthe multiplexed broadcast signal; a display device; means for displayingthe display object on the display device, based upon the display objectinformation; and means, in response to a certain event to the displayobject displayed on the display device, for executing certain processingcorresponding to the content information, for the content information.

In this configuration, also, the user first views the display object andchecks whether or not the contents are those the user desires to see orutilize. The user can then view and utilize the desired contentinformation by clicking, etc.

Also, according to the sixth technical feature, the information displayapparatus comprises: means for receiving a broadcast signal havingmultiplexed therein, content information and display object informationrelated to the content information; means for extracting the contentinformation and the display object information from the multiplexedbroadcast signal; a display device; means for displaying the displayobject on the display device, based upon information regarding thedisplay object; and means, in response to a certain event to the displayobject displayed on the display device, for executing certain processingcorresponding to the content information, for the content information.

Also, according to the sixth technical feature, the informationtransmission and display method compraises the steps of: transmitting abroadcast signal that contains display object information related tocontent information; receiving the broadcast signal; extracting thedisplay object information from the broadcast signal; displaying thedisplay object on a display device, based upon the display objectinformation; and, in response to a certain event to the display objectdisplayed on the display device, executing certain processingcorresponding to the content information, for the content information.

Also, according to the sixth technical feature, the information displayapparatus comprises: means for receiving a broadcast signal containingdisplay object information related to the content information; means forextracting the display object information from the broadcast signal; adisplay device; means for displaying the display object on the displaydevice, based upon information regarding the display object; and means,in response to a certain event to the display object displayed on thedisplay device, for executing certain specified processing correspondingto the content information, for the content information.

(7) Automatic Data Retrieval Method

According to the seventh technical feature of the present embodiment,the information transmission and display method comprises the steps of:multiplexing, in the broadcast signal, certain content information andsupplementary information related to other content information to beretrieved in response to display of the certain content information;transmitting the multiplexed broadcast signal; receiving the multiplexedbroadcast signal; extracting the certain content information and thesupplementary information, from the multiplexed broadcast signal;displaying the certain content information thus extracted; acquiring theother content information based upon the extracted supplementaryinformation; and displaying the other content information thus acquired.

In this configuration, by utilizing supplementary informationtransmitted together with the content information, it is possible todisplay automatically other content information by retrieving othercontent information from the specified location, in response to thedisplay of the content information.

According to the seventh technical feature, the information transmissionand display method comprises the steps of: receiving a broadcast signalhaving multiplexed, certain content information and supplementaryinformation related to other content information to be retrieved inresponse to display of the certain content information; extracting thecertain content information and the supplementary information, from thebroadcast signal; displaying the certain content information thusextracted; acquiring the other content information based upon theextracted supplementary information; and displaying the other contentinformation thus acquired.

In this configuration, also, it is possible to display automaticallyother content information, when content information transmitted bymultiplexing in the broadcast signal is displayed.

Also, in this configuration, the broadcast signal may be a televisionbroadcast signal. The certain content information and the supplementaryinformation may be multiplexed in a television broadcast signal byinserting then into the vertical blanking intervals of the televisionbroadcast signal. The supplementary information may contain informationthat specifies the location where the other content information isstored. The location may be a location on a network. Furthermore, thelocation may be a transmission path by means of broadcasting.

Also, according to the seventh technical feature, the informationdisplay apparatus comprises: means for receiving a broadcast signalhaving multiplexed, certain content information and supplementaryinformation relating to other content information to be retrieved inresponse to display of the certain content information; means forextracting the certain content information and the supplementaryinformation, from the broadcast signal; means for displaying the certaincontent information thus extracted; means for acquiring the othercontent information based upon the extracted supplementary information;and means for displaying the other content information thus acquired.

In this configuration, also, it is possible to display automaticallyother content information, when content information transmitted bymultiplexing in the broadcast signal is displayed.

In this configuration, the means for displaying the certain contentinformation and the means for displaying the other content informationmay be the same.

Also, according to this seventh technical feature, the informationtransmission and display method comprises the steps of: transmitting abroadcast signal containing supplementary information relating tocontent information to be retrieved automatically; receiving thebroadcast signal; extracting the supplementary information from thebroadcast signal; and acquiring the content information based upon theextracted supplementary information.

Also, according to this seventh technical feature, the informationdisplay apparatus comprises: means for receiving a broadcast signalcontaining supplementary information relating to content information tobe retrieved automatically; means for extracting the supplementaryinformation from the broadcast signal; and means for acquiring thecontent information based upon the extracted supplementary information.

(8) Program Reservation

According to the eighth technical feature of the present embodiment, thebroadcast signal transmission and reception method comprises the stepsof: multiplexing information regarding broadcast programs in a broadcastsignal; transmitting the multiplexed broadcast signal; receiving themultiplexed broadcast signal; extracting the information regarding thebroadcast programs, from the multiplexed broadcast signal; and selectingamong channels of a broadcast receiver based on the extractedinformation regarding the broadcast programs.

In this configuration, it is possible to acquire easily the informationregarding the broadcast programs, and the desired station selection canbe reserved easily based upon the selection, etc. with the information.

Also, according to this technical feature, the broadcast signalreception method comprises the steps of: receiving a broadcast signalhaving multiplexed therein, information regarding broadcast programs;extracting the information regarding the broadcast programs, from themultiplexed broadcast signal; displaying the information regarding theextracted broadcast programs; and selecting among channels of abroadcast receiver in order to receive a broadcast program selectedbased upon the displayed information regarding the broadcast programs.

In this configuration, also, it is possible to acquire easily theinformation regarding the broadcast programs, and the desired stationselection can be reserved easily based upon the selection, etc. with theinformation.

Also, the broadcast signal may be a television broadcast signal. And,the information regarding broadcast programs may be multiplexed byinserted it into the vertical blanking intervals of the televisionbroadcast signal.

Also, according to this technical feature, the broadcast signal receivercomprises: means for receiving a broadcast signal having multiplexedtherein, information regarding broadcast programs; means for extractinginformation regarding the broadcast programs, from the multiplexedbroadcast signal; means for displaying the extracted informationregarding the broadcast programs; and means for selecting among channelsof a broadcast receiver in order to receive a broadcast program selectedbased upon the displayed information regarding the broadcast programs.

In this configuration, also, it is possible to acquire easily theinformation regarding the broadcast programs, and the desired stationselection can be reserved easily based upon the selection, etc. with theinformation.

Also, in this configuration, means for indicating whether or not torecord the selected broadcast program and means for recording theprogram selected for recording may also be provided.

Also, according to this technical feature, the broadcast signal receivercomprises: means for receiving a broadcast signal having multiplexedtherein, information regarding broadcast programs and informationregarding start of broadcast program recording; means for extracting theinformation regarding the broadcast programs, from the multiplexedbroadcast signal; means for displaying the information regarding theextracted broadcast programs; means for selecting among channels of abroadcast receiver in order to receive a broadcast program selectedbased upon the displayed information regarding the broadcast programs;means for extracting information regarding start of broadcast programrecording, from the multiplexed broadcast signal; and means for startingthe recording of the broadcast program, based upon the extractedinformation regarding the start of the broadcast program recording.

In this configuration, it is possible to acquire easily the informationregarding the broadcast programs, and the desired station selection andrecording can be reserved easily based upon upon the selection, etc.with the information.

Also, according to this technical feature, the broadcast signaltransmission and reception method comprises the steps of: multiplexinginformation regarding start of broadcast program recording in abroadcast signal; transmitting the multiplexed broadcast signal;receiving the multiplexed broadcast signal; extracting the informationregarding the start of the broadcast program recording, from themultiplexed broadcast signal; and starting the broadcast signalrecording based upon the extracted information regarding the start ofbroadcast program recording.

In this configuration, it is possible to adjust the recording timing.

In this configuration, the information regarding the start of thebroadcast program recording may be the information that triggers therecording of the broadcast signal upon the reception, or it may containinformation regarding the time for starting the recording of thebroadcast signal.

Also, according to this technical feature, the broadcast signalrecording apparatus comprises: means for receiving a broadcast signalhaving multiplexed therein, information regarding start of broadcastprogram recording; means for extracting the information regarding thestart of the broadcast program recording, from the multiplexed broadcastsignal; and means for starting the broadcast signal recording based uponthe extracted information regarding the start of the broadcast programrecording.

In this configuration, also, it is possible to adjust the recordingtiming.

What is claimed is:
 1. An information transmission and display method,wherein a display is formed by an information display apparatus whichdisplays a television program display area and an icon display area on adisplay device in a first mode and displays the television programdisplay area, the icon display area and a content display area on thedisplay device in a second mode, the method comprising the steps of:multiplexing a broadcast signal with source information that specifies asource of certain content information, and an icon information, saidsource information not being included in other content informationtransmitted by the broadcast signal; transmitting the multiplexedbroadcast signal; receiving the multiplexed broadcast signal; extractingthe source information and the icon information from the multiplexedbroadcast signal; retrieving the certain content information from thesource, based upon the source information; displaying, in both of saidfirst mode and said second mode, a picture of said television broadcastprogram in said television program display area and said iconinformation in said icon display area; displaying, in said second mode,at least a part of the certain content information received from thesource, in said content display area; and moving from said first mode tosaid second mode in response to clicking on an icon in the icon displayarea, to open the content display area and displaying contentinformation responding to said icon that was clicked.
 2. The informationtransmission and display method of claim 1, wherein the certain contentinformation is content information transmitted by a broadcast signaldifferent from the multiplexed broadcast signal.
 3. An informationdisplay apparatus, which displays a television program display area andan icon display area in a first mode and displays the television programdisplay area, the icon display area and content display area in a secondmode on a display device, the apparatus comprising: means for receivinga broadcast signal multiplexed with source information, and iconinformation, said source information specifying a source of certaincontent information, and not being included in other content informationtransmitted by the television broadcast signal; means for extracting thesource information and the icon information from the received broadcastsignal; means for retrieving the certain content information from thesource, based upon the source information; means for displaying, in saidfirst mode, a picture of said television broadcast program in saidtelevision display area and said icon information in said icon displayarea, and displaying, in said second mode, a picture of said televisionbroadcast program in the television program display area, said iconinformation in said icon display area, and means for displaying at leasta part of the certain content information in said content display; andmeans for switching from the first mode to the second mode in responseto clicking on an icon in the icon display area to open said contentdisplay area and display content information corresponding to said iconthat was clicked.
 4. An information transmission and display method,wherein a display is formed by an information display apparatus whichdisplays a television program display area and an icon display area on adisplay device in a first mode and displays the television programdisplay area, the icon display area and a content display area on thedisplay device in a second mode, the method comprising the steps of:transmitting a broadcast signal that contains source information thatspecifies a source of certain content information, and icon information,said source information not being included in other content informationtransmitted by the broadcast program signal; receiving the broadcastsignal; extracting the source information and the icon information fromthe broadcast signal; receiving the certain content information from thesource, based upon the source information; and displaying, in both ofsaid first mode and said second mode, a picture of said televisionbroadcast program in said television program display area and said iconinformation in said icon display area; displaying, in said second mode,at least a part of the certain content information received from thesource, in said content display area; and moving from said first mode tosaid second mode in response to clicking on an icon in the icon displayarea, to open the content display area and displaying contentinformation responding to said icon that was clicked.
 5. An informationdisplay apparatus, which displays a television program display area andan icon display area in a first mode and displays the television programdisplay area, the icon display area and content display area in a secondmode on a display device, the apparatus comprising: means for receivingat a broadcast signal containing source information that specifies asource of certain content information, and an icon information, saidsource information not being included in content information transmittedby the television broadcast signal; means for extracting the sourceinformation and icon information from the received broadcast signal;means for retrieving the certain content information from the source,based upon the source information; means for displaying, in said firstmode, a picture of said television broadcast program in said televisiondisplay area and said icon information in said icon display area, anddisplaying, in said second mode, a picture of said television broadcastprogram in the television program display area, said icon information insaid icon display area, and at least a part of the certain contentinformation in said content display area; and means for switching fromthe first mode to the second mode in response to clicking on an icon inthe icon display area to open said content display area and displaycontent information corresponding to said icon that was clicked.